


Cookies and Coincidences

by AshJuillet



Series: Christmas Fics [9]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Cookies, Christmas Fluff, Coincidences, F/M, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:40:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28008597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshJuillet/pseuds/AshJuillet
Summary: AU. Muggle. Hermione tries to grab the last bottle of vanilla essence, but someone tries to take it from her. Now, they're both holding hands, and neither of them is letting go. Who will win the battle for the last essence bottle?
Relationships: Hermione Granger & Remus Lupin, Hermione Granger/James Potter, James Potter & Lily Evans Potter, Remus Lupin/Lily Evans Potter
Series: Christmas Fics [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2038066
Comments: 4
Kudos: 74





	Cookies and Coincidences

**Author's Note:**

> Pairing: James/Hermione  
> Prompt: We both reach for the last item on the shelf and now we're awkwardly holding hands and neither of us is letting go.

Hermione rushed through the supermarket, searching for the vanilla essence. It was the only ingredient she needed to buy to complete her gingerbread cookies as she had run out of it during the last batch. Her friends were going to come over the next night for Christmas dinner, and as they were bringing along a friend of their own, Hermione didn’t want the person to be offended by the lack of cookies. Okay, ‘lack of cookies’ might be a stretch, but she wanted everything to be perfect — and her gingerbread cookies had always been baked to perfection.

Walking past the oils’ aisle, she turned into the baking aisle and saw the essences on the shelf right across from her. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw there was only one small bottle of vanilla essence left. She reached out to pick it up, but then, another hand reached out and tried to take the bottle at the same time.

In the confusion, Hermione’s fingers entwined with the stranger’s as they both attempted to grab onto the bottle. Bewildered, she stared at the man’s hand and then, she looked up at the man. He was taller than her by several inches, had messy black hair and hazel-brown eyes. When she tried to extract the vial-like bottle from his hand subtly, he stared right back at her, not bothering to let go.

“Uhm, excuse me, but this is mine,” Hermione said, her face beginning to turn red at the man’s proximity and the warmth of his hand in hers. “Would you mind letting go?”

“It doesn’t have your name on it, love,” the man drawled, tugging his hand closer to his body in an attempt to take what Hermione had deemed rightfully hers. She didn’t let go of his hand either.

“Still, _I_ saw it first, so it’s mine,” Hermione argued, awkwardly stepping closer to the man. She tugged their hands closer to her chest, thinking the man might get embarrassed by their proximity and let go, but she was mistaken.

A devious smirk formed on the man’s lips. “Well, if I said I saw you first, would you say you’re mine?”

“Excuse me!” Hermione gasped, almost letting go of the bottle to cover her mouth in shock, but she clung on at the last moment. “Who do you think you are? Do you think you can just take this from me? _No way_!”

“I’m _James Potter_ , and I get what I want, beautiful. Right now, I want this vanilla, and you are going to give it to me quietly.”

“How presumptuous of you! You can’t just threaten me like that!”

“Oh, I think I can. I need that bottle for my cake, and—”

“Well, tough luck! I need it for _mine_!” Hermione snapped, scowling up at him. Her curly brown hair bounced as she stepped on her tiptoes and shoved her finger at his chest. “My gingerbread cookies won’t be perfect if I don’t get this vanilla!’

“Let go of my hand so I can count the fucks I give. Oh, wait… I _don’t_ care about your stupid cookies,” he taunted, sneering at her with annoyance in his eyes.

Hermione gasped and almost stomped on his toes in anger. How dare he call her cookies stupid? Who did he think he was? Her face reddened even more, her throat tightening, as she snarled, “Well, I don’t care about your stupid cake! Give me my bottle!”

“It’s _mine_!” James yanked on the bottle, and Hermione shrieked as she stumbled into him. They toppled against the shelf and went down in a heap. The bottle of essence rolled out from between their hands and slipped under the shelf. 

Hermione cried out in pain when James tried to roll them over to get to the bottle first. She slapped at his chest and tried to shove him off, her panic increasing at her situation. “You arse! Give it to me!”

“Hell, no!” James roared in triumph as he wrestled the bottle away from her fingers and shot up. “Aha! Victory is mine! In your face, shorty!”

A lump formed in her throat, and Hermione gawked as he began to wiggle his hips and wave his arms over his head, taunting her with his supposed victory, and she lunged at him, knocking him to the floor. James squealed when she straddled his stomach and attempted to pin his arms down. “If you wanted me under you, you could have just said so, beautiful,” he teased as she glared at him.

“Give. Me. The. Bottle. Now.”

“Ha! As _if_!” The look on his face made her want to punch it off of him.

Hermione lost control of herself, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she cried, “Just give it to me! Please!”

“Oh, God, what is wrong with you?” James gasped as she tried to pummel him with her little fists. “You’re madder than a hatter!”

She sobbed as she dropped her head to her chest. “Please… Just give it to me.”

“Hey,” James said, his tone suddenly soft and compassionate. “Are you okay? I’m sorry for making you cry… I didn’t mean to. Really.”

She sniffled as she stared at his chest, still straddling him. “It’s my first Christmas away from my parents, and I want everything to be perfect. My friends are bringing _their_ friends over, and I want to make a good impression on them. It’s just so hard, okay? I don’t want them to think that I don’t know how to do anything right, and—”

“Okay, you’re absolutely crazy,” James said, interrupting her suddenly. “Fine, I’ll make my cake without the vanilla. Here, take it. Now, please, just stop crying. You’re freaking me out.” He shoved the small glass bottle in Hermione’s hands.

She gave him a shaky smile, her eyes still wet with tears, and James was suddenly hit with the realization that she _was_ beautiful and currently on top of him. He swallowed and tried to be suave. “So… Do you often get on top of men like this… or am I special?”

Hermione blushed as she quickly jumped off of him. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to — Okay, yes, I did mean to lunge at you — but I didn’t—”

James laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. “You’re cute. And terrifying. It’s a dangerous combination, but I like you. Hi, I’m James Potter.” He extended his hand towards her, and she shyly shook it.

“Hermione Granger,” she murmured, holding onto the vanilla essence tightly.

James’ eyes widened when he heard her name. “Wait, Hermione Granger? By any chance, are you friends with _Remus Lupin_?”

Hermione gasped. “Yes! We own the Lupin-Granger bookstore. You know him?”

“Yeah, he’s Lily’s husband, right? I’m Lily’s childhood friend,” James explained, grinning at her. “In fact, they’ve invited me over to your house tomorrow night. I was baking a cake to bring over tomorrow.”

“Wow! What a coincidence,” she exclaimed, amazed. “And I was making gingerbread cookies for you…”

James threw his head back and laughed heartily. “I’m sorry I called your cookies stupid, by the way… Now that you’re making them for _me_ , you won’t poison them, will you?”

Hermione giggled and shook her head. “I won’t, I promise. And you know you can substitute honey or maple syrup for vanilla essence…”

“I’m just following the recipe, love. If I accidentally poison you tomorrow night due to my lack of baking skills, you won’t get mad, right?”

Hermione grinned, her heart feeling lighter than ever. “It’s the thought that counts.”

* * *

The next evening, when Lily and Remus arrived with James in tow, Hermione offered him a gingerbread cookie at the door. James grinned as he popped it into his mouth and let out a sinful groan. “Oh, God, these are heavenly! What did you add in these? Vanilla essence?” he teased, scooping up a few more cookies and taking large bites out of them.

“As a matter of fact, yes. Yes, I did. And what have you brought for me? A cake? Did you bake it yourself?”

“Yes, I did. I hope you don’t die after eating it,” James teased.

“Hey, why don’t we get the cookies first?” Remus asked, annoyed at the preferential treatment Hermione was giving James. He’d been her friend for almost two decades, but she had always kept him away from her cookies until dinner was finished.

“He’s a guest, Remus,” Hermione called out over her shoulder as she motioned for James to enter. “You practically live here when you’re not at home or at the bookstore, so you can’t be called a guest.”

“I resent that,” Remus grumbled, plopping down in the armchair, and Lily laughed as she sat down beside him. “I’m your best friend, so I should get the cookies first. Right, Lily?”

James grinned and asked, “Well, have you ever seen your best friend start crying in the middle of the supermarket before?”

Lily gasped. “You two have already met? When? James, why didn’t you tell me?”

Remus, on the other hand, turned his head to look at Hermione, who was trying not to meet his eyes. “Hermione,” he called out pointedly. “What did you do this time?”

“This time?” James and Lily echoed, confusion evident on their faces.

“Shut up, Remus,” Hermione hissed, her cheeks red with embarrassment.

“Hermione has a knack for getting whatever she wants,” Remus explained with a smirk. “So, James, how did you two meet?”

James shot Hermione a glance, and she grinned sheepishly. “Should I tell them about ‘the incident’?”

Hermione looked at Remus and said, “He tried to take the last bottle of vanilla essence, and I did what I had to do.”

“And… he gave it to you,” Remus surmised with a shake of his head, and Lily laughed. “Hermione, seriously, how many times have you done that now? Fourteen?”

“What? You’ve straddled people to get what you want fourteen times?” James cried, suddenly hurt.

“She _straddled_ you?” Remus asked, stunned. “I thought she started crying. She did that crying routine with an old lady once, and the woman handed her a few coins to get her to stop crying.”

“So, you haven’t straddled anyone else before like that?” James teasingly asked Hermione, who groaned and buried her face in her hands.

“No, and shut up, Remus. I was six years old, okay?”

“What else have people offered you, beautiful?” James teased, smirking at her, and Remus and Lily were surprised to see the effect it had on the brunette.

“A couple of sweets, some coins, the last bottle of vanilla essence, a date—”

“A date? Who offered you a date? Such a douchebag!” James cried, angry at her behalf. “You didn’t go out with the man, did you?”

“I was about to say that someone offered me a date-and-fig bar,” Hermione explained. “The woman was sweet, though.”

“Oh.” Remus and Lily snickered at the embarrassed look on James’ face.

When they were leaving after dinner and dessert, Hermione said to James, “Did you really think someone had offered to take me out on a date?”

“Well, if no one has, they’re an idiot. So… would you go out with someone who’s baked you a terrible cake? With a lot of honey and sugar?” James asked softly, his eyes trained on Hermione’s. “Someone who thinks you’re terrifying yet cute?”

“If you’d like to go out with someone who thinks you’re an arse and that you dance like a monkey on drugs, then yes, I’d love to.”

“Perfect! Get ready to dance with the druggie monkey on New Year’s Eve,” James said with a triumphant smirk. “One day, I’m sure you’ll call yourself the monkey’s _girlfriend_ and tell people how he stole your heart — and the vanilla essence before giving only one thing back.”

And Hermione laughed.


End file.
